Razor blade sharpener



.3 H C .5J il M A M RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER may 31, 195o Patented July 16, 1935 l 2,008,211

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RAZOR BLADE SHARPENER John Holtzlnan, New York, N. Y.

Application May 31, 1930, Serial No. 458,150 `9 Claims. (Cl.A51`-153) This invention relates to devices for holding 'the VelOuS movable parts are mounted. The side and stropping Safety razor blades f all types, and Walls 0f the frame are each fOlIlled I'Om a Chilnis'intended to be an improvement upon the strucnel-shaped member Il lJlOVided With e pail 0f ture disclosed in Patent No. 1,399,241, dated horizontal nanges as I2 and I3 and having a 5 December 6th, 1921, for Device for sharpening Web as I4 J'Oining the flanges. A similar channel 5 blades for `safety razors, granted to Wilhelm es l5 ODDOsed t0 the Channel H iS provided at the Bars-en other side of the frame, said channels being In the device shown in the patent referred to, joined by the end members IB and l1 secured a sharpening body is provided, surfaced on one i0 iShe side Channels es by means of Suitable face with a strop, and on the other face, with a SCTeWS G1 rivets |8- The, end members 16 and Il 10 hone. It is customary to first hone the blade, further SUDDOI the bearing plete I9, WhiCh Plate when neoessenfy,v and then to strop it. However, terminates at its ends inwardly of the ends of previous devices such as that shown in Patent No. the device and Which is PIOVided at its Side edges 1,399,241 necessitate the removal of the blade AWith a peil' 0f rails es 20'and 2| extending forfrom the machine after the blade has been honed Wardly toward the end member I6 and secured 15 and the 'rearrangemeit thereof on the other side thereto.` The rails 2B and 2| are also extended of the machine so that the edge of the blade may TeelWardly into engagement With the end membe drawn across the strapping surface on the bel 7 and there Secured in place. opposite feoe of the sharpening body VAt the forward edge 22 of the plate I9, a recess s My invention contemplates the provision of es 23 is mede and irl Seid reCeSs is DiVOtellY 20 Ineens whereby the made need no1; be disturbed mounted a suitable reversing roller as 24 for comduring either the stropping or the honing opera- Dieting the reversal Of the blade in a manner tions or in the Change from one operation to the which is Well known in the art and which need other. My invention further contemplates the 110i; be further described.V

25 provision of means for allowing rapid andef- The Diete` ig iS further DIOVided With a Sub- 25 oent change from the honing to the stropping -stantially central aperture 25 conforming to the operation without the necessity for handling the Olli-line Of the Sharpening member 26 and in which blade with the consequent danger of injury to said member is set to project substantially the the user. My invention further contemplates the seme distance ebOVe the 'GOD 0f the plate I9 and provision of simple, eicient and inexpensive belOW Une betteln SheleO The Sharpening mem- 30 means for maintaining the blade in contact with ber 25 l'sflll'thel' provided With dV Deir 0f similar the sharpening surface during either sharpening IeCesSes 27 and 23 Each 0f Seid l'eeesses isedapi'f operation, and further contemplates the provied to be engaged in turn by the slide catch 29 sion of a device simplied in constructionxwherewhich is slidably supported on the upper surface by a blade may be both honed and stropped in a 0f the plaie i9 es by Ineens Of JBhe 10011 30, pref- 35 comparatively short time. erably struck up from and integral with the re'- The various objects of my invention will be mainderof the plate I9. The slide catch 29 may clear from the description which follows, and terminate in a handle loop as 3| to provide for from the drawing, in which Y easy handling by the user. For preventing the 40 Fig. 1 is a top plan view of my improved decomplete withdrawal of the slide catch from the 40 vice, loop 28 and to further prevent loss of said catch, a Fig. 2 is a vertical section ofthe same, taken on suitable stop as 32 may be struck up from the the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. plate i9 so as to prevent said catch from being Fig. 3 is a similar section, taken on the line completely detached from the plate. 3-3 of Fig. 1 and showing the reciprocatory The sharpening member 26 is preferably pro- 45 blade supporting means. vided with end holes as 33 arranged coaxially of Fig. 4 is a similar section, taken on the line said member and coaxially with each other. A 4 4 of Fig. 1, and pin as 34 terminating in a suitable conical bear- Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the sharpening ing point 35 is inserted into each of the holes and member and of the'means for rotatably supportis normally pressed voutwardlyof the member 26 50 ing said member for quick change from the stropas by means of a compression spring 36. For ping to the honing operation. supporting the pins 34, part of each of the rails In-that practical embodiment of my invention 2i) and 2l and part of the material removed from which I have illustrated by way of example, a the aperture 25 may be bent obliquely to the restationary frame as I 0 is provided, on which mainder of the rail to form a bearing plate as 55 31 which is provided with a suitable aperture for vthe reception of the conical end 35 of the pins 34.

It will be understood that the springs 36 press the bearing pins 3d outwardly so as to maintain said pins in the apertures of the bearing projections 3l, and that when the sharpening member 26 is freed of the slide catch 3| said member may be freely rotated in the aperture 25 about the pins 3ft into the position desirable for bringing either the honing surface 38 or the stropping surface 3S uppermost into sharpening position.

I have shown the double edge blade Il!) suitably supported in the blade holder il in a manner which is well known but it will be understood that by the provision of a suitable holder, a single edge blade may also be sharpened in. my im. proved device. The blade holder'lll may be oi' any suitable type such as that wherein two halves are hinged together at one end and secureable in closed position about the blade near their other ends. Asshovvn particularly in Figs. l and 4, the blade holder terminates in suitable pins as 42 secured as by riveting or in any other suitable manner to thevfriction blocks 43. Said blocks are designed to contact with the underface Afl of the channels li and l2 for the purpose of rotating the blad-e ho-lder and the blade carried thereby `when the direction of reciprocation of the blade holder is reversed so that both edges of a double edge blade may be sharpened. It will be seen,

therefore, that both sides of the blade at both cutting edges are sharpened in succession by the partial rotation of the blade holder and by the completion of the reversal of the blade holder by the roller 24 when therblade support is car,- ried forwardly and'baclgwardly tothe limits of its stroke in either-direction.

For reciprocating the blade holder and the blade carriedY thereby, I provide a manually re ciprocable carriage aS 45 which includes the handle portion 46 by means of which the entire carriage together with the blade holder may be pushed forwardly and rearwardly. The handle 46 is secured at the side of the device to a pair of plates 41 which; are arranged to reciprocate between the flanges of the channels lll and l5. At its lower edge, each of the plates 41 is providedwith a substantially horizontal flange as `Mito which is secured the sheet spring @9. Said spring engages the uppermost surface of the lower channel flange and serves to urge the entire carriage, including the plate l1 and the blade holder 4|, upwardly to bring the upper edge of the friction cam 43 and the horizontal'part 56 of the upper edge of the plate lll into frictional Contact vwith the under face of the upper flange of the side channel. 'It will be noted that the remainder 5l of the Lipper edge of the plate 41 is inclined downwardly in a forward `direction for the purpose soon to be described. The inner face of the plate 41 engages the outer face of the rail 26 and is guided thereby for straight line move.- ment as the carriage is reciproca-ted.

It will be understood that a pair of plates 41 are provided as well as a pair of springs 49, one for each of the channels il and l5 so that the above description of one of the plates will suffice for both. YIt will further be seen that as the carriage is pushed forwardly toward the end Vpiece 'l 6, the friction cam 43 is rotated in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 2 to bring the rear edge of the blade lill into contact with the sharpen- ,ing surface of the member 26. As the carriage 'd5 approaches the limit of its forward movement, and the rear ,edge of the blade leaves the member 26, said rear edge engages the roller El! and on further movement, said rear edge leaves the roller. When this occurs, the spring i6 is free to move the plate 41 upwardly since the friction cam 43 under pressure of the spring 49 is rotated to bring its flat edge into Contact with the under face of the upper channel flange. Not only, therefore, is the inclined edge 5| of the plate 41 Yand the entire carriage as well movedV upwardly by the spring 49 but the` blade holder is simultaneously rotated by the same spring 46, readyv for the re versal action of the roller 24 when the direction of movement of the carriage 46 isreversed. On

Vsuch reversal of the carriage or rearward move-A YAfter the yblade edges 4have been Isufficiently honed by the reciprocation thereof across the hone 38, the blade need not be disturbed but the sharpening member 26 may be quickly and easily reversed. Such reversal ofthe sharpening member to bring the stropping surface 3 6 uppermost is effected bythe withdrawal ofthe'. slide catch 3| from the recess 28 and the rotation of the member 25 about the -pins 3@ through .ajfhalf revolution. Such rotation brings the recessV 21 into alignment with the slide catch whereafter said kslide catch may be inserted into the recess 21 and the member 25 thereby retained in strop.'- ping relation rto the blade.

It will be noted that the blade holder M' is inserted into the slot 56 of the plates 41 and may be readily removed therefrom together with the bladewhen the carriage reaches its extreme forward posit-ion normally, the projecting ends 51 of the Aspring wire 58 are interposed in the path Yof the carriage so that the edge 59 .of said carriage engages `the ends 51. and limits the forward movement thereof. When it is desired to remove the blade, however, the loop 6l) of the spring wire 58 is raised, thereby swinging said wire about its pivot 6| and depressing the projections v51 so vthat `said projections are aligned .with the slots 62 of the plates 41 and further forward movement of the carriage is permitted. Said further forward movement carries the friction cams 43 beyond the terminal ends 63 ofthe flanges of .the .channels and f5 whereby the blade-holder is freed Y of the channels and may be raised out of the slots 56 and the sharpened Yblade removed therefrom or another blade yinserted thereinto. i

It will be seen that the devices herein shown and described are simple, capable of economical manufacture and designed 'to meet the severe requirements .of 'practical use.

'It .will further 'be understood that While I have shown and described a specific vembodiment of my invention, I 4do not wish .to be understood as limiting myself thereto but intend to claim my invention as broadly yasmay be permitted by the state `of the prior art and the terms of .the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a razor stropping device, the combination of a frame, a pair of channels formed in said frame, a .carriage :slidably mounted in said chan? nels for manual reciprocation, a blade holder rotatably mounted in said carriage, spring means interposed between said carriage and said channels for imparting vertical movement to said carriage at the end of its stroke, whereby said blade holder is rotated, a sharpening element mounted diagonally of the device on said frame, means for supporting said element for rotation in the frame relative thereto, andV means cooperating with. the blade to dispose all four edgesides of the blade to said sharpening element individually and successively.

2. A device for sharpening razor blades having' two cutting edges, comprising in combination,l a frame having channels therein, av carriage slidably arranged in said frame, a sharpening element arranged obliquely to the path of thernovement of the carriage, means in said frame for supporting the sharpening element to permit rotation thereof relative to said frame, said sharpening element having a recess therein, a blade holder rotatably mounted in said carriage, discs fixed to the blade holder, a spring fixed to said carriage, said discs being pressed against the channels of said frame for reversing of the blade and for pressing the same against the sharpening element, said element having a honing side and a stropping side, slidable means mounted on said frame cooperating with the recess in said sharpening element for locking Ysaid element against free rotation' thereof and for disposing the honing or stropping sidev of said element to the razor blade when the same is actuated by the manual reciprocation of said carriage longitudinally of said frame.

3. In a razor stropping device, the combination of a frame, a pair of channels Vformed in said frame, a carriage slidably mounted in said channels or manual reciprocation, a blade holder rotatably mounted in said carriage, spring means interposed between Y said carriage and said channels for imparting vertical movement to said carriage, whereby said blade holder is rotated, a reversible sharpening element mounted diagonally of the device on said frame, means for supporting said element for rotation in the frame relatively thereto, comprising pins at the ends of the element and bearings o n the frame adapted to rotatably engage said pins, and means cooperating with the blade to dispose all four edgesides of the blade to said sharpening element individually and successively.

4. A sharpening device for razor blades comprising a frame provided with end members, a carriage arranged for reciprocation in said fame, a blade holder pivotally mounted in said carriage, a plate having an aperture therein and supported by the end members, a pair of bearing projections upstanding from said plate, a sharpening element rotatably supported between said projections to permit rotation of said element in the frame relatively thereto and provided with a pair of recesses, said element, being confined between the side edges of the .aperture and having a honing side and a str-opping side and adapted to interpose either the honing or the stropping side toy the blade edge, means actuated by the manual reciprocation of the 4carriage to move the cutting edge of the blade toward said sharpening element and means supported by said plate and cooperating with one of said recesses for restricting the free rotation or" said element in the frame whereby either the honing or the stropping side of said sharpening element is interposed to the blade edge.

5.A sharpening device for razor blades comprising a frame, a carriagearranged for manual reciprocation in said frame, a plate supported in said frame, a pair of bearing projections located on said plate, a sharpening element rotatably mounted on said projections and having a honing side and a stropping side and having its axis of rotation disposedobliquely t-o the directionA ofv the movement of said carriage, said element being adapted to be reversed in the frame through 180 about said projections to bring either the honing or the stropping side into operative position against the blade edge, and means actuated by the reciprocation of the carriage to dispose the cutting edge of a blade to said sharpening element.

6. A sharpening device for razor blades comprising a frame provided with end members, a slidably mounted carriage in said frame, a blade holder pivotally supported in said carriage, a plate rigidly supported on said end members, a pair of bearing projections located on said plate,

`a sharpening element rotatably supported on said projections with the axis thereof oblique to the direction of the movement of said carriage, said element being adapted to be reversed in the frame through 180 about said projections to interpose either the honing side or the stropping side to the blade edge of the blade carried by the blade holder, and means supported by said plate for restricting the free rotation of said element in the frame during the honing or stropping operation.

7. In a razor stropping device provided with a frame, the combination with a reciprocating blade holder, of means for reversing the blade holder at each end of the stroke thereof, a sharpening element, a member provided with a honing surface arranged on one face of the sharpening element, a member provided with a stropping surface on another face of the sharpening element, stationary bearings at the ends of the element for pivotally supporting said sharpening element in the path of the blade, whereby said element may berotated around relatively to the frame on said bearings and means for locking the element in the position into which it has been rotated in the bearings to arrange either of said surfaces in operative relation to the blade.

8. In a sharpening device for razor blades the combination with a frame provided with end members, of a carriage arranged for reciprocation in said frame, a blade holder rotatably mounted in said carriage, a plate having an aperture therein and supported by the end members, a pair of bearing projections upstanding from said plate, a sharpening element rotatably supported between said bearing projections to permit rotation of said element around in the frame on said projections, spring means interposed between said element and said projections for resisting the free rotation of said element.

9. A sharpening device for razor blades, comprising a frame provided with end members, a carriage slideably mounted in said frame, a blade holder pivotably supported in said carriage, a plate supported on said end members, a pair of bearing projections arranged on said plate, a sharpening element provided on one side with a honing element and on the opposed side with a str-opping element, said sharpening element rotatably supported between said projections with the axis thereof obliquely disposed to the direction of movement of said carriage, said sharp- `ening element being 'rectangular in cross section *rand having pyramdcally shaped ends, vsaid sharpening element adapted to be reversed in saidk frame through 180 degrees on said projec- 5 tions to nterpose either the honing element or the strapping element tp the bladeY edge of Vthe lstrop-ping operation. f

blade carried bythe blade holder, and means spported by said plate forrestrictng the free rotationV of said element'l during the `honing or i JOHN HOLTZMAN. 

